Another young person who has touched my life greatly. One who will be missed constantly.

-With a child’s heart and mind, I always thought that all of life should be pure, and that there shouldn’t be any sorrow. I thought that life itself was only but a few good or bad given years, and during the course of it many decisions must be made to determine whether it would be long and prosperous, or short and troublesome. During my entire young lifetime, some how I felt deep down in my heart that responsibility should always play a great role, and should never be overlooked or forgotten for mere acts of pleasure or for someone else satisfaction. But I didn’t listen to my heart, and for that, many times I suffered tremendously. Why is it that sometimes for the sake of love it always seems like that which is so precious, gets destroyed, and that which is so pure becomes so tainted?

I’ve made some bad choices and decisions but now understand that bad decisions as well as bad choices have been the reason why millions of young dreams were not achieved and millions of young visions were not seen. Because of so many heated, passionate, and crazy moments, millions of young precious lives have been wasted and lost. I realize now that it is only by the grace of God that mine wasn’t one of those. The future looks bright for me now but I can see that the horizon is full of dangerous and deadly inhabitants that appear to be very friendly and safe on the surface.

They are everywhere and around every corner saying to young people like myself come on and take a free ride. Many of us not knowing that nothing in life is ever really free hop aboard and sometime take the ride of our lives. I’ve had many friends to take that deadly ride and died indeed. I wish they were here with me.  Sometimes I wonder why I didn’t perish because I’ve lived very dangerously also, and have said yes more times than I care to remember; yet I survived and I’m very grateful.

I’m not going to say that I was blessed because to me that would mean that my friends that didn’t make it were not. However, I will say that I believe God saved me for a specific and special reason, and everyday of my life I’m realizing and understanding just what it is. But no matter how much faith I have in Him, I realize that I’m not perfect and that I am who I was even though I’m trying very hard to change and be different, and that living is still a long challenging journey for me.

I yet may do and say things that I shouldn’t do and say but all I can do is pray when things are not right, or whenever I’m tempted to do wrong. Being a teenager in the world today is very hard. I wish more adults would realize that and help those of us who are bad get better instead of criticizing us and putting us down. I hope that one day when I’m grown I be strong enough to be a shoulder for someone to lean on, and be able to lend a helping hand to some young person that have lost their way. Lord! Please let me be a bridge over someones troubled water. That is my prayer.

Brittany Shepherd  09/30/1989 - 09/28/2004